11.30.2005

The Spokane/Coeur D'Alene area has been covered with a fresh blanket of snow. Actually, smothered with massive amounts of the white pordwery stuff would be a better description. Snow was expected but it didn't happen according to plan.

Now, I'm not complaining. I love snow - it's beautiful outside, and winter is my favorite season. It just didn't happen like we were told it would.

The original forcast called for 4-6 inches overnight Friday with scattered flurries through the rest of the week. We had a dizzle rain Friday evening and woke up to dry ground on Saturday. Sunday's forcast predicted light snow on Monday and Tuesday with minimal acumulation and then steady snowfall and significant (large) amounts sticking to the ground on Thursday. If the 6-8 inches we've recieved in the last 48 hours is "minimal," I'd hate to see what they mean by "significant."

And this morning, the wonderfull meteorwrongogist on NWCN said that there would not be any snow today and a slight chance of snow tomorrow. Needless to say, it has been snowing non-stop since I left for work this morning.

I'm sure that they're not intentionally lying to us, I just think they don't know what they're talking about. If someone tells me that meteorology requires years of education and scientific training I'd laugh. I honestly belive that news networks do not recruit educated people for their weather reporting.

Here's how I think it happens: A producer is walking downtown and sees someone dancing in the rain and thinks Hmmm, that person would look GREAT in a suit and tie. They should be a weatherman. Then the poor, unsuspecting fool gets slapped with the title of meteorologist and is thrown in front of a camera for a live broadcast. If ratings go up, the person stays. Due to the acuracy of reporting, I think news agencies might have better luck recruiting from the Psychic Friends Network.

As for local maintenance (now I am complaining) they plow snow here like they do in Boise. Instead of using a "plow" they use steamrollers, treating snow like asphalt. Take 6 inches of snow and compact it down into 2 inches of solid ice.

The radio this morning reported about a half dozen accidents and a couple multi-car pile-ups along I-90 recomending everyone to avoid the area if possible. Every accident, I'm sure, included an SUV with 4-wheel drive. (freaks think they rule the roads) Some may chalk up all of these accidents to inexperienced driving or not knowing how to drive in the snow. While that may be true, who can fault them when the freeway is slicker than any ice rink before the start of a hocky game. It's like driving a zamboni along a sandy beach - you can do it, but you will probably damage the zamboni.

11.29.2005

Some definitionsHockey: Like figure skating, with violence.Figure Skating: ice skates + jumpsuits and tu-tus + boring music = something like ballet but I'm not quite sureCricket: A retarded British version of baseballBaseball: One team takes turns running around a diamond shaped circle while the other team stands around and waits for something exciting to happenSnowboarding: skateboarding with snow, trees, steep hills, and no wheelsSkateboarding: Surfing on concrete, usually in places skateboarding is not allowedSurfing: oceanic version of snowboarding, with sharksFootball: two mobs wearing shoulder pads fight over an oddly shaped ball, occasionally they end up in a dog-pileSoccer: Like football, but with a real ball and you can't use your hands

Boxing: A bar room brawl, but legal and with rules

Basketball: Kinda like square dancing, only everyone is REALLY tall and wears squeaky shoes, it also involves an orange ball and a lot of yellingNascar: A bunch of people drive cars plastered with advertisements for Walmart, Cheerios, and cheap beer, there's no point to Nascar except to entertain drunk rednecksPro Wrestling: Bad acting + predictable scripts + big muscles = excuse for white trash to get drunkSumo Wrestling: like pro wrestling with fat guys no scripts and no white trashGolf: a fashion show where the lowest score wins, birdies are good, bogies are bad, and the fans have to be quietTennis: like ping-pong... on a much larger scaleRugby: a sick and twisted mix of football, soccer, hockey, wrestling (pro and sumo), boxing, keep-away, red rover, hot potato, a round of team-slayer in Halo, and a mosh pit

11.16.2005

However, the first person narritive that I started with was beginning to annoy me. So, over the past few days I have been rewriting the whole thing, changing everything from first person to third person.

It is not a pleasant experience, almost as annoying as people who refer to themselves in third person.

part one... "Saw II"Bekah and I met some friends from work to see this movie Friday night. "Saw II" is the equivelent of cinematic vomit. It might taste good when origionally ingested, however, it burns when coming back up. The movie is well written and tells a good story, but is marred by the grisley imagery and strobe-like effects. Upon further consideration, the story becomes more implausible due to the fact it wants you to believe that a dying cancer patient who is physically incapable of getting out of his chair is able to commit such horrific crimes as dipicted throughough the movie. While the grime and shock works in some movies, Twisted Pictures takes "Saw II" into distasteful territory. Not for people with weak stomachs.

part two... RedmarkA good friend (former roommate and groomsman in my wedding) had a show in Moscow Saturday night with his band Redmark. So Bekah and I packed up the car and the baby and took a drive down to see them. One of Bekah's best friends lives down their, so we stayed with her family, while the band stayed at one of the frat houses at U of I. The band put on a rockin show at The Nuart Theater, a coffeehouse/theater/church that Bekah's friend works at part time. I saw Redmark perform last New Years Eve, and this show was exponentially better. Sonically, tighter, more passionate and energetic, and playing to a packed house. There will be another show there next spring, hopefully they'll be able to book a show up here in the Spokane/CD'A area at the same time. The bassist is dating my sister-in-law, so it's cool to have a personal connection to a band with such a potential to go somewhere.

After the show (and after the crowd had disipated and the band's gear had been loaded into the van) we hung out until nearly 1am, playing and singing worship, an activity I hadn't experienced with them since Drew and I were roomates nearly three years ago. It was peaceful, calming, and deeply spiritual. Once it was a normal part of my life, passing the guitar around between friends, worshiping God, enjoying each other's company, and not wanting the music to end. This weekend was almost like old times, a great break from my current stresses.

Mark my words.They'll be big some day, I'd say they'd be cool some day but they all ready are cool. I'll post their website in my links section in a couple of days, so bear with me. They also gave me permission to copy/distribute their promo CD, so let me know if you want a copy.

part three... carnivalBekah (against my plees and wishes) dragged me to a church harvest carnival at some church out in Four Lakes. If you have no idea where Four Lakes is, there is a reason, it's the far side of Spokane tucked into the backwoods of redneckville. It was slightly more entertaining than the Halloween parties at the church I grew up in, but still not my idea of an enjoyable October 31st activity.

Gosh, I remember this one year on Halloween, Shane and I stayed home and played Goldeneye while passing out candy to trick-or-treaters. However, we didn't want our game to be interupted everytime the doorbell rang, so we left the front door open with the bowl of candy in the threshold and tempted fate with the honor system. One kid (dressed as a pirate if I remember correctly) asked how much candy he could take. Our answer - as much as you want. His eyes got so big, I thought he was going to run off with all of it. For ambiance, we had Korn and Rob Zombie playing on the stereo at full volume. A couple kids actually asked their parents if they could stay at our place and play games instead of finishing trick-or-treating. Solid proof that the Nintendo 64 was cooler than candy.

About

nic is a geek dad, a professional nerd, a pop-culture junkie, a joyful noise kind of singer (with an emphasis on noise), a sloppy and undisciplined guitarist, and a funky white boy with no sense of rhythm. He is a former actor who still loves the theater, a former architecture student who still loves drafting and design, and a former graphic artist who has lost his touch. He has an artist's heart with very little artistic talent. He is a pessimistic optimist or an optimistic pessimist.

He spends Thursday nights watching movies with his kids and hangs out with his church's worship band on the weekends. His thoughts end up here.The Faithful Geek is nic's exploration of parenthood, corporate life, and the strange intersection where faith and pop culture meet.